Virtual Reality

Chapter Five

Kagome and Inuyasha were practically blinded by the sun when they entered the other world, which was hopefully Egypt. They weren't sure, but both of them were praying. As their eyes adjusted to the bright light and high temperature, the dog demon noticed that he was standing on sand, incredibly dry sand. A quick sniff of the air told him that there was little moisture.

They were in a desert.

"Wow... big," the miko commented as soon as she could see. The first thing her eyes had lit upon was gigantic pyramids... three of them. All three were tall and beautiful as the sun shone off the white limestone, their peaks reaching high up into the sky. They seemed to touch the sun.

"The pyramids of Giza," the hanyou said, sounding amazed as well. It was hard not to be impressed by such gigantic structures, even though they were merely ones and zeros. The tallest one had to be at least 450 feet tall, and the shortest was probably 200 feet or so. Big was putting it lightly. Colossal was more like it.

"I'd say we're in Egypt then," Kagome stated with a small smile. 'It shouldn't take that long to get to the pharaoh or whoever rules Egypt. Then, all we have to do is find out from him where the Shikon no Tama is. Hopefully, it's in Egypt too.'

Inuyasha rolled his golden eyes, setting the miko down on the ground. Her ankle was fine, thanks to some herbs she had been applying to it. "No shit, Sherlock. Whatever gave you that idea?"

She grinned and pointed at the pyramids. "Them," she replied. 'Teasing him is fun.'

He shook his head, not quite sure how to react to the girl. In truth, he did kind of enjoy her strange attitude. It was entertaining, to say the least, and he liked how she kept things light but didn't go overboard. She stood her ground as well, which was a big plus. He had met quite a few chicken players, and he hadn't liked them very much. They had always annoyed him.

"Let's get going," Inuyasha stated, beginning to walk off. He had a rough idea where the pharaoh's palace was, so he was set on arriving there as soon as possible. Walking around a desert was not his idea of fun.

"Wait up!" Huffing softly, Kagome raced after him.


The dark-skinned woman sighed sadly, her dark eyes on the reflecting pool, which just happened to show Kagome and Inuyasha walking through the desert. "This quest has become far too easy for them. We should... spice things up." She smiled mischievously. "Fun, fun, fun."

Blue eyes filled with amusement, the blond shook her head. "You're too eager. We don't want to break them."

"Oh, tish-tosh. They'll be just fine," the first woman retorted, flapping her hand.

"Are you sure?" the pale-skinned woman inquired softly.

The dark-haired woman nodded. "And just to prove it, I'll have Uwibami and an aigaumcha entertain them."

"An aigaumcha I can understand, even twenty aigaumchas, but Uwibami? Isn't that a little extreme?" the blond inquired, frowning slightly.

"Of course." The first woman grinned, her dark eyes sparkling. "You two just wait and see. I've already dispatched them. Inuyasha and Kagome should be meeting up with their opponents any second now."


Kagome sighed and wiped her forehead. "I know the creators of this game wanted everything to be realistic, but they really didn't have to make ancient Egypt so hot." She was sweating so bad she was willing to bet her body in the real world was sweating as well.

"I smell water, which is most likely the Nile," Inuyasha replied, silently echoing his agreement. He hated the heat too. "If you're that hot, then once we reach it, you can jump in the river."

She smiled. "That sounds heavenly." She suddenly stopped walking, a familiar feeling coming over her. A monster was coming... a new and different one.

"Demon," then silver-haired hanyou whispered, eyes darting around. Almost everything he could see was nothing but sand and more sand, but off to his left, he spotted a dark shape that was quickly becoming larger.

"There's a monster coming too, like the spidrens but different," Kagome informed him, notching an arrow on her bow. She wanted to be ready for her opponent. "I think it's coming from the same direction as that demon. I'm not sure how powerful it is, but it feels evil."

Inuyasha drew his sword, the transformed blade reflecting the sunlight. He stood there, proud and ready for battle as the enemy continued to approach.

Golden eyes widened in shock when the demon came close enough for him to see exactly what kind of demon it was. His opponent was a dragon demon, but it was far larger than Ryuukossei by at least a hundred feet. The dragon was so big he blocked out the sun and blackened the skies, his jet black scales almost glowing with power.

"Uwibami," Kagome breathed, her mouth hanging open. A few years ago, she had gone through a faze in which she had read everything she could on mythology. She didn't remember much of what she had read, but she did remember the stories about the dragon-like creatures. Uwibami had been a gigantic serpent or dragon from Japanese mythology that had been large enough to swallow a man on horseback whole--a formidable opponent, indeed. Fortunately, a man named Yegara-no-Heida had fought against Uwibami, killing the dragon; however, it seemed like the Elves felt like reviving him just for the purposes of their little game.

The miko's attention was drawn away from the dragon when she felt something bite her ankle. Crying out, she shook her foot, trying to dislodge whatever was biting her. A small monster with six arms and two legs went flying, landing in the dirt a few feet away. Before it stood back up, she noticed something unusual about the monster--it had eyes on its feet.

The creature hissed at her, baring blood-stained fangs, before launching at her again, its speed absolutely phenomenally. She could barely even follow it with her eyes, let alone shoot an arrow at it. 'I hope Inuyasha can take care of Uwibami, while I deal with this little guy,' the raven-haired girl thought, firing an arrow at the ground near her feet.

Inuyasha leapt straight up into the air at the dragon demon, preparing to slash him in half with his sword. His blade bounced right off the dragon's scales, not even leaving a scratch. While thunder-like laughter boomed through the air, the hanyou cursed. 'Shit. He's strong and obviously fast. To kill him, I'd have to cut off his head or hit his heart, and to do that I need a distraction.' He looked around for the miko, finding her firing arrows at a tiny creature. 'What is she doing?'

Kagome bit her lower lip in concentration as she fired a circle of arrows around herself, her power creating a blazing wall around her body. The creature avoided her magic, obviously scared of it. 'Now, if I can only get it to hold still so I can actually hit it with an arrow,' she thought wistfully, firing once again at the creature. The shaft missed, burrowing in the sand. When she reached back to grab another arrow out of her quiver, she realized that she was out. She had used her last arrow.

Not really knowing what to do, but understanding that she was safe from the creature as long as her arrows encircled her, she looked around for Inuyasha. He was fighting against the dragon demon, the huge dragon demon Uwibami. The enemy was so fast that the inu youkai couldn't seem to strike a sensitive place. Uwibami just dodged, using the harder scales on his back and sides to deflect every one of Inuyasha's attacks.

Inuyasha growled as he landed on the sandy ground. The dragon demon was proving to be a powerful adversary, one that he wouldn't be able to defeat by simply swinging his sword. He would have to use greater firepower... not that he minded.

"Kaze no Kizu!" he shouted, leaping up into the air, aiming the attack at the demon's head.

"You will have to do better than that to defeat me," the black dragon replied, swiftly moving so that another piece of him took the brunt of the assault. "If you can even do that before I decide to eat you."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Inuyasha shrugged off the demon's response. "If I had a coin for every time someone has said something like that to me, I'd be able to buy every fucking item in this game." He glanced out of the corner of his eyes, trying to see if Kagome was still okay. Luckily, she was, but the little monster was still trying to attack her. 'C'mon, Kagome. Deal with that stupid creature so we can defeat the bigger threat. I won't be able to land a single real hit on him without a distraction.'

"Geez, you're annoying," Kagome muttered, glaring at the little monster. It simply continued to hiss at her, throwing sand at her, aiming for her eyes. 'I have to think of some way to kill this thing.' Her eyes wandered over the arrows that littered the ground. They were scattered all over, creating a loose, open circle around the monster. If she could have ran a rope between them all, the creature would be imprisoned. 'Of course!'

Smiling, the miko focused all of her attention on the shafts in the sand. Her magic still blazed inside of them, so she called upon it. Purple-pink power blazed all around the creature as streams of the magic shot out of each arrow, forming a kind of fence around the ugly monster.

The creature hissed and cried out, the sounds sharp and piercing. It tried to escape from the trap, but the walls her arrows and miko magic had created were too high; it was trapped.

"Let's see if I can hit you now," Kagome whispered, forming an arrow of pure magic and notching it. She pulled the arrow back and then fired. The creature couldn't dodge; it couldn't do anything as her attack came straight at it. Her purple-pink shaft hit home--the creature's heart. Within moments, there was nothing left of her opponent, not even ashes.

Quickly gathering up her arrows, she once again looked over at Inuyasha. He didn't seem to be faring well against the dragon. All of his attacks, no matter how well-aimed they were, missed. Uwibami kept blocking them with the less vulnerable parts of his body. 'Inuyasha needs a distraction. He needs someone to keep Uwibami from moving just long enough for him to chop of the thing's black head. I hope my arrows will be enough.'

Inuyasha swiftly jumped out of the way as the dragon demon swooped down, mouth wide open. There was no way he was going to let his enemy eat him. He didn't want to die, and he most certainly didn't plan on it. 'I hope he bites he own tail, the bastard,' the hanyou thought darkly, dodging another diving attack. He tried to counter-attack, but it was useless. The black dragon was smart, very smart, which was not a good thing.

"Hey, Uwibami! Why don't you dodge this!" Kagome yelled, firing an arrow straight at his head. It blazed purple-pink, showing that it was surrounded by her magic. Alas, the dragon demon swiftly moved in the air, using another, stronger part of his body to deflect the arrow. Silently cursing, she fired more arrows, each one glowing with power. Just like the first one, each shaft failed, striking another part of his body that which the arrow had been intended for.

"Foolish girl. Not only is your magic worthless against my kind, but your arrows are too slow. You'll never be able to destroy me, not with your pathetic abilities," Uwibami declared, positioning himself so he could easily swoop down and devour the miko.

"I guess you forgot about me!" Inuyasha shouted. "Bakuryuuha!" Power erupted from his sword, the attack aimed at the dragon demon's head. With the hanyou being so close, Uwibami couldn't dodge. He tried to though, quickly bringing his tail between him and the dog demon; however, he was too slow. The attack struck him right between the eyes, enveloping him.

The hanyou landed back on the ground beside Kagome, his golden eyes fixed on the demon that was crashing down to the ground. Moments later, nothing was left of the dragon's body.

Kagome sighed in relief. "That battle was a nightmare." She glanced down at her ankle, which was bleeding sluggishly. A set of perfect teeth marks adorned her skin, each one red and swollen. "I need water so I can clean this wound. That creature's teeth did not look sanitary."

Inuyasha's gaze followed the miko's own, and his eyes widened when he saw her wound. "Why didn't you tell me that thing bit you?!" he exclaimed, kneeling down to get a better look at her damaged ankle. It was bad, and he couldn't even figure out how she was still standing. Also, the wound smelled funny, and that made him worry. "Sit down," he ordered, scowling. They would have to do something about her ankle immediately.

"I think I'll be okay, Inuyasha," she assured him. 'Although I do have bad luck, it seems. It's the same ankle I hurt fighting those demons by Bifrost Bridge, and I'm all out of healing herbs.' "I just need to get to water soon so I can clean it. It doesn't hurt."

The hanyou just shook his head. "It probably had some kind of painkiller in its saliva, which is why it doesn't hurt. It'll pain you later though, so listen to me and sit down," he snapped. "I have to clean the wound now, not later."

Mentally shrugging, Kagome obeyed, allowing him to inspect her ankle with gentle hands. When he poked her flesh with a claw, she didn't feel a thing. It seemed that his assumption about a pain killer had been correct. "We have no water or any liquid, so how are we supposed to clean the wound now?" She frowned and then bit her bottom lip in worry. She didn't know what to do, and that fact bothered her.

'There isn't any other way,' Inuyasha thought, taking a deep breath. 'The wound needs to be cleaned right now. I can't wait any longer.' He gave the raven-haired miko a reassuring look. "Don't try to fight me. I'm going to clean the wound."

She cocked her head to one side, her brown eyes curious. "How so?"

He didn't verbally answer. Instead, he lowered his head and began to lick her wound, his rough tongue cleaning all her blood off her skin.

Kagome gasped in reaction but kept still, knowing that he was trying to help her. She merely licked her dry lips and let him continue, keeping perfectly silent. It was strange, watching him lick her skin, but natural at the same time. She didn't mind it, but as he continued to clean her wound, pain slowly swept through her ankle.

Inuyasha felt his heart go out to the miko when she felt her tense in pain. There wasn't anything he could do about it though, except be thankful that he was a dog demon. His saliva could cleanse wounds... not that he had ever used his saliva for that before. Kagome was the first one.

When the lower half of her leg felt like it was on fire, the miko watched the inu hanyou draw away, an expression of worry on his face. "How's your ankle?"

Kagome winced. "It's been better." She tried to put on a brave face, but she couldn't. She was just in too much pain, which meant that she wouldn't be able to walk.

Inuyasha picked her up bridal style. He knew that she was in no condition to even stand up, let alone walk . "Once we arrive to the palace we can see about getting you a healer... or something," he told her, beginning to run in the direction that he knew the palace was in.

She bit her lower lip and allowed her head to rest against his muscular chest, fighting back the pain. "Thank you, Inuyasha." Even though her ankle hurt more than before, she understood that he had only done what had been best for her. She couldn't have asked for anything more than that.

He smiled softly, the expression barely noticeable. "You're welcome."


An hour later, they arrived outside the palace. It was huge, built mainly out of limestone and beautiful marble. Gigantic statues of Egyptian gods stood on either side of the entrance, casting shadows across the sandy path. Everything around them seemed to have been done on a grand scale, making the two feel like minuscule ants.

"Amazing," Kagome breathed, wincing slightly when she accidentally moved her hurt ankle. The wound had really begun to bother her. It was getting to the point where she had the greatest desire just to chop her wounded area off, relieving herself of the pain. Unfortunately, she knew that removing her foot would only cause her more agony, so she just remained mostly silently as Inuyasha carried her.

"Let's see if anyone's home," Inuyasha said, walking up a small flight of stairs to reach the interior. The steps were made of marble and perfectly level. Interesting, to be sure, but he didn't worry about that. Instead, most of his attention was focused on the woman with the large boomerang that was standing beside a huge pillar.

The strangely armed female was dressed in a completely black outfit that had small red pieces of armor attached in different places. She had pulled her long black hair into a high ponytail, her brown eyes carefully studying him from beneath black eyebrows. A sword hung at her side, and a small demon cat with two tails perched on her shoulder, watching the approaching demon and miko as well.

"State your name and business," the woman demanded, her hand resting on her boomerang. She wasn't sure if she trusted the inu youkai or not, but she felt her heart go out to the miko. 'She is injured, but why is a demon carrying her? I always thought that demons and mikos didn't get along very well.'

"Inuyasha. I'm here to see the ruler of Egypt," the hanyou replied, narrowing his eyes at the female. 'She's dressed like a demon exterminator, which means she just might be one of those rare, non- magical humans who can actually stand up to a demon.'

She rolled her eyes, obviously unimpressed. "And why do you wish to see Queen Cleopatra?"

"The Oracle said that she's the only one who can answer our question about my quest," Kagome answered.

'The Oracle?' Her hand eased away from her boomerang. 'She must be telling the truth. Her face says she is.' "And you are?"

"Kagome," the miko stated, a small smile on her face. She instantly liked the other female, although she wasn't quite sure why.

"I'm Sango," the woman in black replied. "Come on inside. I'll have someone tend to your wound while I talk to Queen Cleopatra."

"Thank you," Kagome said gratefully, her eyes reflecting how she felt.

"You're welcome." Sango turned around and began to walk off; Inuyasha followed, Kagome in his arms.


Sango led Kagome and Inuyasha into a nicely decorated room, instructing them to wait while she sent someone to them. Then, the demon exterminator left.

The hanyou placed the wounded girl down on a pillow-covered couch, taking care not to cause any more harm to her ankle. "Are you comfortable?" he asked, sitting down in a nearby chair.

Kagome nodded her head. "Yes, thank you." She winced when she glanced down at her wound. "I appreciate all of this, really I do."

He shrugged, secretly pleased. "Don't mention it. That's what friends do."

She couldn't help but smile at that, despite all the pain she was in at the moment. 'I didn't even know that he considered me a friend,' she thought. "Right. Friends," she responded, nodding her head in agreement.

Right then, a young black-haired boy walked into the room, his brown eyes kind. He was dressed in a suit similar to Sango's, and he carried a metal box in his arms. "I'm here to tend to Kagome's wounds," he stated, voice soft and caring.

Inuyasha gestured toward the miko's ankle. "Have at it."

The young boy set the box down by Kagome's feet and opened it up, pulling out cloth and a clay jar. The clay jar was filled with a green liquid, which he applied to the wounded area. Amazingly enough, it deadened the pain, much to the female's relief. Then, he wrapped the cloth around her ankle.

"Thank you," Kagome said once he was finished. "But who are you?"

He smiled gently at her. "I'm Kohaku, Sango's younger brother," he answered politely. "And you're welcome." Then, he packed up all his things and left.

Inuyasha looked at Kagome. "How's your ankle doing?"

"Much better," she replied happily. "Most of the pain is gone. That stuff he put on my wound is amazing." Smiling, she attempted to stand up, only to have the hanyou gently push her back onto the couch.

"Just because the pain is gone doesn't mean you're healed," he scolded, frowning at her. She was foolish to try to put any weight on her damaged ankle so soon after hurting it.

Kagome sighed, feeling stupid for trying to do something so foolish. "You're right. I guess I just got a little carried away." She gave him an apologetic look.

A small sound drew the miko's gaze to the door. Sango stood there, looking slightly uncomfortable. "I spoke to Queen Cleopatra, and she said that you have to earn the right to speak with her."

"And how do we do that?" Inuyasha wanted to know, sounding rather unhappy. He was quickly growing tired of all the mess he and Kagome were having to go through just to find the Shikon no Tama.

"She says you have to defeat her champion, Kouga the wolf demon," the woman in black replied. "If you can do that, then you may speak with her."

The hanyou grinned. 'How hard can fighting him be?' he mused. "Bring 'em on. I'll defeat him, no problem."

Sango sighed. "Unfortunately, he's not here at the moment."

"Okay... when will he be back?" Kagome inquired, blinking. She couldn't help but wonder if something was wrong. The other female just looked too troubled for her liking.

"In a month," the demon exterminator replied.

"WHAT?!" Inuyasha shouted in surprise.

Sango decided to explain. "No one has wanted to fight him in a long time, so he grew bored and left on vacation. He should be back in about a month."

The silver-haired demon crossed his arms, scowling darkly. "This is fucking stupid. I can't believe I have to wait a whole month just to fight some stupid wolf so I can talk to Cleopatra."

"Calm down, Inuyasha," Kagome recommended. "Maybe there's something else we can do to earn the right to speak with her." She turned her gaze to Sango, expression hopeful.

The woman just shook her head. "No. Queen Cleopatra was very specific. You have to defeat Kouga if you want to talk to her."

The hanyou growled. "And what are we supposed to do until then? Just sit around?"

Sango smiled softly, remembering the fact that she did have one piece of good news for them. "Because the queen realizes how long you two will have to wait, she offered some rooms here in the palace which you can stay at while you're logged in. That way, you'll be here when Kouga arrives," she informed them.

"Fine," he said reluctantly. "It's not like we have much of a choice."

"I'll show you two where your rooms, but then I have to report back to Queen Cleopatra's side," Sango stated.

"Will we be seeing you again?" Kagome inquired as Inuyasha picked her up. "I'd like to get to know you better."

Sango couldn't help but grin. "As long as I'm not on guard duty... Sure."


The month passed by rather quickly for both Inuyasha and Kagome, much to their surprise. The miko and Sango became good friends, and the inu youkai grew even closer to Kagome, just as she did to him. The three spent countless hours together, wandering around the bazaars, exploring the many beautiful temples, and simply talking. Kohaku even joined them on their outings, revealing just how attached he was to his sister and vice versa. Of course, Kagome's ankle healed perfectly, much to her delight, and by the end of the month, she was walking and running as if nothing had happened. Things were pretty good, but things so change.

It was the middle of the afternoon, and Kagome and Inuyasha were sitting outside the palace, talking, when Sango came outside, smiling. She seemed happy about something, so naturally, the miko and hanyou were curious.

"What's up, Sango?" Kagome inquired, standing up and facing her good friend.

"Kouga's back, and the battle is to take place immediately," the black-clad female replied. "It will take place in the thrown room in front of the queen, and no weapons are allowed."

"I hope the room's indestructible," Inuyasha muttered, standing up as well. He wasn't sure on what he thought about Kouga, a man who could just go off on a month vacation, but he was sure that he wanted to fight. Although he had enjoyed spending the last month just enjoying Kagome's company, he had missed all the battles they usually got themselves into.

"I don't know about that, but I do know that the audience will be small," Sango responded. "Now, come on. Queen Cleopatra does not like to be kept waiting."

So, without wasting time, Sango led Kagome and Inuyasha to the thrown room, a huge room with towering pillars and mosaic floors. A woman with black hair and equally black eyes sat on a golden throne at one end of the room, a golden headdress adorning her, marking her as the queen. Her white robe swept down to just below her ankles, barely revealing her sandal-clad feet.

Next to Queen Cleopatra stood a man. He had pointed ears and a dark brown tail that swished back and forth. His long black hair was in a high ponytail, and a headband went around his forehead. Blank blue eyes stared out at everything, and when he grinned, he revealed sharp canine teeth. He was dressed in clothes that were a mixture of armor and brown fur.

Inuyasha felt an instant dislike for the man, easily realizing that it was Kouga, the wolf demon--his opponent. "He looks weak," the hanyou commented, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'll have no problem kicking his butt."

"I'm not so sure," Kagome responded as Sango went to stand by the queen's throne.

"Feh. He's nothing but a wimpy wolf." The silver-haired man smirked. "Bring it on."

The queen stood up, her black eyes going straight to Kagome and Inuyasha. Besides Cleopatra, Kouga, Sango, the miko and the hanyou, there was no one else in the room. It was as Sango had said--a small audience.

"As soon as the dog demon discards of his weapons, the battle will begin," Cleopatra stated, her voice filling the room.

Inuyasha handed his sword, sheath and all, to Kagome. "Take good care of this while I earn us the right to talk to Miss High and Mighty, okay?"

"All right..." Praying that he would be alright, the raven-haired miko watched Inuyasha walk toward the wolf demon.

"Let's get this started, Kouga," the hanyou said, cracking his knuckles. "I'm more than ready to pound your skull into the ground if need be."

Kouga laughed as he strode right up to his opponent. "Yeah right."

Then, with that said, the two began to fight. Inuyasha threw the first punch, landing a perfect hit in the middle of the wolf demon's stomach. Kouga quickly recovered, trying to uppercut the hanyou. Inuyasha dodged, striking out with his claws, but the wolf demon saw it coming, crouched down, and tripped the inu youkai.

Soon, their battle became a ferocious match, which reminded Kagome of a dog fight she had seen a clip of on the internet a few years back. The two demons snarled at each other as they both tried to gain the upper hand. Unfortunately, Kouga was a little faster than Inuyasha, giving him a slight advantage; however, the hanyou was the stronger of the two.

Kouga landed a kick in the dog demon's side, but Inuyasha quickly recovered, hitting Kouga in the face with all his strength. The wolf demon went flying back about ten feet, skidding across the floor for another five. As soon as he came to a stop, he was back on his feet, rubbing his face. He looked impressed.

"Not bad," the wolf demon said with a smirk. "But you're still going to lose."

"I doubt that," Inuyasha replied. He was tired of the battle, tired of Kouga, so he decided to end it. It was time to take things to the next level.

"Whatever, dog breath." Kouga raced at the inu youkai, preparing to strike the hanyou with his fist. He was not going to lose the battle, there was absolutely no way. He had never been defeated before, so it was impossible for a hanyou to beat him, he was sure of it.

Inuyasha didn't even make a move to dodge. He merely grinned. "Sankon Tetsusou!" He slashed out at Kouga with his claws, the power slicing through the armor covering the wolf demon's chest and sending him flying once again. Unfortunately for Kouga, he didn't get back up. The wolf demon stayed down, although he was still breathing. Inuyasha had spared his life.

"I was right. It wasn't that hard," the inu youkai stated, going back to Kagome and taking back his sword from her.

"Good job," Kagome congratulated him, smiling. "And I'm happy you didn't kill him."

"Yeah, whatever. The only thing I care about now is having our question answered," he responded, turning to glare at Cleopatra. He wasn't quite sure what to make of the woman on the throne, but he had a feeling she was an AI.

Sango grinned at her two friends. "Bravo. You're the first person to have beaten him."

"So now we get to talk to Cleopatra." Inuyasha crossed his arms.

"Be polite," Kagome recommended. "She's a queen."

He sneered at that. "Feh."

The queen shook her head, seemingly amused. "You have defeated Kouga and so earned the right to talk to me. So, ask me your question that the Oracle claims I have the answer to."

Kagome stepped forward. "Where is the Shikon no Tama?"

Cleopatra chuckled. "I never thought anyone would ever ask me about that," she responded. "But I do know where it is."

"Well, spit it out!" Inuyasha ordered, tone rough.

The miko lightly hit him over the head. "Be nice!" she snapped.

That only caused the queen to laugh harder. "Oh... you both are so entertaining." She smiled softly at the both of them. "But as for your question, the Shikon no Tama is in a statue of a god."

"Which statue and which god?" Kagome inquired curiously.

"It's in the base of the statue of the god Okuni-Nusihi inside the Japanese palace," Cleopatra answered.

Inuyasha about fell down face first. He couldn't believe it. After all the traveling they had done, the stupid thing was in ancient Japan!

"IT'S WHAT?!?!"


The woman with black hair and dark skin smiled. "See? I was right. They did just fine against Uwibami, and now look at them, they're even closer than they were before."

The blonde smiled, blue eyes briefly gazing into dark ones. "Yes, you were right. I'll give you that."

"Very impressive," the pale-skinned woman added. "It probably will not take them too much longer."

"Yep." The dark-haired woman clapped her hands. "And I know who they get to deal with next."

The blue-eyed female cocked her head to one side, expression filled with curiosity. "Oh? Who?"

She grinned. "A taiyoukai by the name of Sesshoumaru."